Web3 and Other Technology News

Developers Meet Devin

Cognition AI has unveiled Devin, an autonomous AI system which is capable of developing entire software projects from simple text instructions. Devin is capable of planning and executing hundreds of complex coding steps, continuously learning and debugging while collaborating with users in real-time. In demonstrations, Devin developed functional websites and applications within 10 minutes and successfully completed freelance coding gigs posted on Upwork autonomously. On a rigorous coding benchmark evaluating real-world GitHub issues, Devin achieved a remarkable 13.86% completion rate, shattering the previous state-of-the-art benchmark of 1.96%. Unlike conventional coding assistants, Cognition AI positions Devin as a truly artificial software engineer. This means there is a potential for a future where anyone can create software concepts without coding expertise by leveraging AI.

Physical Intelligence is Bringing AI to Physical World

Physical Intelligence (Pi) has received $70 million in seed funding which was led by Thrive Capital, with participation from Khosla Ventures, Lux Capital, OpenAI, and Sequoia Capital. Pi, founded by a team of renowned robotics and AI experts, aims to develop a universal model that can bring AI to the physical world, enabling robots to perform tasks across various applications.

The founding team brings together a wealth of expertise from academia and industry. It includes Co-founder and CEO Karol Hausman, who previously worked as a scientist on robotics at Google, along with co-founders that includes Sergey Levine, a professor at UC Berkeley known for his pioneering work in robotics; Chelsea Finn, a professor at Stanford University; Brian Ichter, a former Google research scientist; and Lachy Groom, a former Stripe executive and prominent tech investor.

Pi seeks to overcome the challenges that have hindered the progress of AI in robotics. Pi's approach involves merging techniques used to build language models with its own methods for controlling and instructing machines. The company collects robot data at an unprecedented scale, makes algorithmic advancements, and training large models.

Recently, there has been a growing interest in AI-powered robotics. Figure AI recently raised $675 million from OpenAI, Nvidia, Jeff Bezos, and Microsoft to build robots for logistics and manufacturing facilities. More companies are recognizing the potential of AI in the physical world leading to more investment to develop sophisticated robotics software.

Salesforce Launches Einstein Copilot

Salesforce has introduced new data and artificial intelligence solutions for health-care workers in order to help lessen their administrative workloads. The first tool is Einstein Copilot: Health Actions that will allow doctors to book appointments, summarize patient information and send referrals by prompting AI with conversational language, according to a release. Salesforce also announced Assessment Generation to allow organizations to digitize health assessments like surveys without having to manually type or code them.

The two new features are built on the company’s Einstein 1 Platform. The platform enables health organizations to bring medical data from disparate sources like insurance claims systems and electronic health records into one place. According to a recent survey from Athenahealth, more than 90% of physicians report feeling burned out on a “regular basis” and 64% of doctors said they feel overwhelmed by administrative requirements.

Doctors can use Einstein Copilot: Health Actions to generate a patient summary that includes details like patients’ medications, clinical service requests, diagnoses and tests. By generating a summary with AI, physicians would no longer need to spend time looking up all those components independently.??

Salesforce said its Assessment Generation tool will be generally available this summer, and Einstein Copilot: Health Actions will be available for use at the end of the year. All Einstein Copilot features and functionalities are also expected to comply with HIPAA regulations as of this summer, the company added.?

Grok Chatbot Goes Open-Source

Elon Musk announced that his AI startup xAI will open-source its Grok chatbot in his escalating feud with Sam Altman's OpenAI and the race to dominate the AI space. Musk unveiled Grok in November as a ChatGPT rival with real-time internet access via integration with X/Twitter. Open-sourcing Grok's code aligns xAI with companies like Meta and Mistral AI unlike OpenAI's closed models.

Grok is expected to have a ‘live’ search engine connected to X (formerly known as Twitter), have a 25k context window, and eventually run natively in Teslas. The move comes just days after Musk filed a lawsuit against OpenAI and the release of private emails showing Musk initially supported a for-profit shift.

South Korean Startup Launches AI Companion Doll

South Korean startup Hydrol AI has launched an AI-powered companion doll that aims to alleviate loneliness among its rapidly aging population. The doll costs $1,800. Hydrol's AI doll uses LLMs to engage in full conversations and provide emotional support to seniors living alone. Its features include medication reminders, health coaching, music, as well the ability to alert caregivers of issues thanks to built-in sensors. South Korea faces declining birth rates and a soaring elderly population.

South Korea's local governments have embraced the dolls, deploying around 7,000 units so far. According to Hydrol, its dolls have reduced depression levels and improved medication adherence among a test group of 9000+ users. The doll comes with a companion app and web monitoring platform for caretakers to monitor remotely. Safety features are installed to alert when no movement has been detected for a certain period, essentially always watching the user. In addition, the doll offers touch interaction, 24-hour voice reminders, check-ins, voice messages, a health coach, quizzes, exercise, music, and more.

There are definitely some privacy concerns, but I can also see the potential benefits.